The NPD Group on Tuesday released market share data for digital video streaming in the U.S. Not surprisingly, Netflix continues to dominate the market with its Watch Instantly service. 61% of digital movies streamed in the U.S. are served by Netflix, and its closest competitor is Comcast, which sits at a distant second with 8%. Interestingly, Apple sits in a three-way tie for the No. 3 spot with just 4% of the market. Apple’s refreshed Apple TV was deemed by many to be a success last year, with sales having surpassed 1 million units this past December. Even when combined with iTunes movies streamed to computers, however, the Apple TV still hasn’t helped Apple make a dent in the digital video market. With new players like Amazon and Redbox entering the space and Netflix still going strong, Apple may have to be a bit more innovative if it hopes to make a dent in the market. Hit the break for the full press release. More →

A report on Wednesday claims European streaming music extraordinaire Spotify is “a few weeks away” from signing a new deal with Universal Music Group, the world’s largest music company. Reuters cites people familiar with the talks in reporting the deal, which will give Spotify access to Universal’s massive catalog of music in the U.S. Spotify has already inked a deal with Sony and the company is thought to be getting close to a U.S. launch. Despite the company’s progress, however, the report suggests Spotify is considering a launch without having signed a deal with Warner Music Group, the world’s third largest music label. Spotify currently offers a streaming music service in Europe and has been making considerable efforts of late to launch in the U.S. The service allows subscribers to listen to songs on demand and stream customized Internet radio stations to computers, cell phones and other devices. More →

Following rumors that streaming music provider Spotify was close to reaching its first deal with a U.S. record label, MediaMemo reports that the company has finally put one in its win column stateside. Spotify today signed a deal with Sony that will give the service access to Sony’s music catalog in the U.S., according to the report. The terms of the deal are said to be very similar to Spotify’s European deals, which would give U.S. users access to ad-supported streaming to a computer for free or ad-free streaming to a variety of devices for a monthly fee. The deal does not mean that a U.S. launch of the Spotify service is imminent, however. The company still needs to get additional labels on board, and it has had a great deal of trouble wooing U.S. labels thus far. Theories as to why labels are so reluctant include fear of further cannibalization of CD sales and fear of upsetting Apple, the top music retailer in the country. More →

Waiting for Verizon Wireless to light up 4G LTE in your hood? Droid-life has got a hold of what they are reporting to be some of the next cities Verizon looks to be launching 4G service. At the end of 2011, we should see at least 140 markets be blanketed with LTE coverage, and by 2013, Verizon is aiming to have at least 2/3 of the country covered. Hit the break for some of the rumored 2011 markets.

Spotify, the popular European streaming music service provider, is finally nearing a deal in the U.S., the New York Post reports. Following more than a year of negotiations with U.S. record labels, Spotify is said to be close to a deal with Sony and has “gained the support” of another label, according to The Post’s sources. Spotify launched in Europe in 2008, offering unlimited streaming music on demand. In its current state, Spotify offers free ad-supported access to users, as well as two paid premium plans — an ad-free £4.99 plan, and a £9.99 plan that allows streaming to mobile devices and station caching for off-line playback. The company has been fighting to offer its service in the U.S. for over a year but has been met with opposition from record labels, which are still uneasy with certain subscription models. Spotify would not confirm The Post’s report. More →

Nielsen released its November 2010 smartphone market share data for the U.S. on Monday, and highlighted two main observations along with its report. First, Apple’s iOS platform held on to the lead it won in October, when it passed RIM to become the most popular OS in the United States with 27.9% of the market. RIM’s BlackBerry OS fell to the No. 2 spot at that time with 27.4% and Android closed in on both platforms with 22.7%. Nielsen’s new November data shows Apple climbing slightly to 28.6% while BlackBerry OS just barely holds its position above Android, falling to 26.1% compared to Android’s 25.8%. Nielsen’s other observation emphasizes Android’s huge popularity over the past six months. Among those who made smartphone purchases in the last six months in the U.S., 40.8% bought Android devices, 26.9% bought iPhones and only 19.2% purchased BlackBerrys. More →

According to Nielsen’s numbers for October 2010, Apple’s iOS has passed RIM’s BlackBerry OS to become the most popular smartphone operating system currently in use in the U.S. The data jibes with both Canalys and NPD Group, which also put Apple in the No.1 smartphone spot in October. Nielsen’s Q3 market share data showed RIM with 30% and Apple with 28% of the market. After the first month of Q4, Apple holds 27.9% of the market and RIM sits close behind with 27.4%. Both companies lost market share to Google, which jumped from 19% to 22.7% in October. Considering Android’s rapid growth rate — which shows no signs of slowing — it’s a safe bet that Apple’s reign will be short-lived. At its current pace, Android should overtake the No. 1 position sometime in the first quarter of 2011. More →

Microsoft fans, start your engines. It’s been a long time coming but today it’s finally here… Windows Phone 7 handsets are now available for your purchasing pleasure in the U.S. Microsoft launched its new mobile OS last month in Europe and we’ve had to sit and wait impatiently as our friends across the pond dangled their Windows wear in our faces. Well, not any more — the HTC Surround, Samsung Focus and HTC HD7 are already available for purchase and the Dell Venue Pro is rumored to drop later today. The LG Quantum is also available for pre-order from AT&T starting today. Expect to pay $199.99 for any of the aforementioned Windows Phones, though better deals are available through the likes of Amazon.com, as is often the case. More →

New numbers released Monday by research firm NPD Group suggest that Android has further extended its lead in the U.S. with 44% of the smartphone market. The bigger news, however, is that RIM has seemingly slipped behind Apple, which is now the number 2 smartphone vendor in the United States. Last week, IDC stated that Apple passed RIM to become the fourth largest cell phone maker in the world. Now, according to the new NPD report, Apple gained a single percentage point to attain a 23% share of the U.S. smartphone market while RIM slid to 22%, making it the number 3 smartphone vendor in the U.S. NPD’s numbers vary slightly from another report issued Monday morning by Canalys, the end result is the same. Canalys reaffirms Android’s 44% market share while stating that Apple rose to 26% and RIM fell to 24%.

Despite Android’s lead as a platform, the iPhone is the most popular smartphone model in the U.S. without question. Apple currently sells only two smartphones and both are iPhone models — the $199-$299 iPhone 4 and last year’s iPhone model, the iPhone 3GS, which is now $99. The California-based company is expected to introduce a third iPhone early next year that will operate on Verizon Wireless’ CDMA network. More →

Now this is more like it! The Wall Street Journal is reporting that Samsung product executive, Hankil Yoon, informed them that the Galaxy Tab tablet would retail for somewhere between $200 and $400 in the United States. Yoon did say that the final price of the device would vary depending on carrier subsidies; hopefully the two to four hundred dollar figure is unsubsidized. Sammy is predicting to ship over 10 million Tab’s next year and would like to grab at least ten percent of the tablet market share. The report is good news, as earlier rumors had the Galaxy Tab selling in Germany for upwards of $1,000 for the 32 GB model. Mr. Yoon also said that his company is in talks with “multiple U.S. carriers.” More →

Just a quick PSA here. If you want to know the official (and vague) dates of when your Motorola Android handset will be updated, direct your web browser to Motorola’s support forums. The company has updated their “Android Software Upgrade” page to let you know in which three to six month window you can expect to see an update for your handset. Here are the listings for the U.S. and Canadian models:

Phone Model

Timeline

USA

BACKFLIP (USA)

Upgrade to Android 2.1 planned for Q3

CLIQ (USA)

Upgrade to Android 2.1 – testing in process, planned for late Q3/early Q4

CLIQ XT (USA)

Upgrade to Android 2.1 – testing in process, planned for late Q3/early Q4

Analytics firm Canalys has released their Q2 2010 smartphone market share metrics, and the numbers show Android continues its explosive growth. In Q2, the top three smartphone vendors in the U.S. were RIM, Apple, and HTC respectively. Worldwide, the top three smartphone vendors were Nokia, RIM, and Apple respectively. The statistic in this report that really baked our noodle was the following: “With key products from HTC, Motorola, Samsung, Sony Ericsson and LG, among others, shipments of smart phones running the Google-backed Android operating system grew an impressive 886% in Q2 2010. […] Android devices collectively represented a 34% share of the US market in the quarter, and with growth of 851% Android became the largest smart phone platform in the country.” There you have it. Those are some pretty staggering numbers, no? Hit the read link for the full report. More →

If you are anxiously awaiting the release of Windows Phone 7, Microsoft’s COO Kevin Turner has some good news for you. In a presentation regarding WP7, Turner let go the closest thing to a U.S. release date we’ve heard thus far, November. Turner said, “in the October timeframe and the November timeframe, October likely across Europe and November likely across the U.S. we’re back in this game.” Prior to this discovery, the closest go-live date given by Microsoft was a three month window they were referring to as “the holiday season.” November, with its thirty days, is certainly more welcomed and specific. We’re due to see handsets from Dell, HTC, Samsung, LG, and ASUS on or shortly after launch, so we say… bring on WP7! More →